Key Takeaways
- • Manulife John Hancock Retirement, in collaboration with Great Gray Trust Company, is developing Lifetime Blend+, a new suite of target-date collective investment trusts (CITs) that would allocate up to 20% to private markets, according to the firms' November 9 announcement.
- • The open-architecture strategy is expected to draw on Apollo Global Management (equity), J.P. Morgan Asset Management and StepStone Group (infrastructure), and Townsend (real estate), alongside Manulife's in-house real estate and credit capabilities.
- • Great Gray is expected to serve as trustee, providing trust structure, fiduciary oversight and operational infrastructure for holding private-market exposures in a daily-valued, participant-directed vehicle.
- • The initiative is built on Manulife Investment Management's Lifetime Through Glidepath, developed by its Multi-Asset Solutions Team (MAST).
- • StepStone, which reports $913 billion in total capital responsibility, framed the offering as a step toward bringing institutional private-markets expertise to defined contribution plans.
Summary
Manulife John Hancock Retirement and Great Gray Trust Company, LLC announced on November 9 that they are developing a new suite of target-date collective investment trusts with private markets exposure, named Lifetime Blend+. According to the announcement, the suite would allocate up to 20% to private markets, including private equity, credit, infrastructure and real estate, with the balance allocated to Manulife John Hancock-affiliated collective investment trusts and stable value products. The product is designed to help defined contribution participants prepare for longer retirements by providing growth, income, diversification and inflation resilience across both the accumulation and decumulation phases.
The open-architecture portfolio design draws on several external and internal managers. The private markets allocation is intended to include an equity solution managed by Apollo Global Management, infrastructure managed by J.P. Morgan Asset Management and StepStone Group, and real estate managed by Townsend. Manulife's own capabilities include its in-house real estate team at Manulife Investment Management and credit capabilities delivered through Manulife | CQS Investment Management and Manulife | Comvest Credit Partners.
Great Gray is expected to act as trustee, supplying the trust structure, fiduciary oversight and operational infrastructure needed to hold private-market assets inside a daily-valued, participant-directed vehicle. Rob Barnett, President and CEO of Great Gray Group, the parent company of Great Gray and one of the largest independent CIT trustees in the United States, said that private assets must sit inside a vehicle that values daily, trades on recordkeeping platforms and meets fiduciary standards.
Wayne Park, CEO of Manulife John Hancock Retirement, said the product builds on the firm's established target-date framework by integrating private-market exposures "in a thoughtful and disciplined way." David Cohen, Head of U.S. Retirement Investment Product at Manulife John Hancock Investments, described Lifetime Blend+ as bringing together the firm's capabilities across retirement, multi-asset investing, stable value and private markets. Manulife John Hancock also said expanding private-market access in retirement plans requires investor education and pointed to educational resources for participants.
Taylor Benson, Managing Director and Head of U.S. Defined Contributions at StepStone, cited non-correlation to public markets, durable cash flows and inflation resilience as reasons for a private infrastructure allocation in the target-date fund. StepStone's private infrastructure business invests across digital infrastructure, energy, utilities and transportation.
The open-architecture portfolio design draws on several external and internal managers. The private markets allocation is intended to include an equity solution managed by Apollo Global Management, infrastructure managed by J.P. Morgan Asset Management and StepStone Group, and real estate managed by Townsend. Manulife's own capabilities include its in-house real estate team at Manulife Investment Management and credit capabilities delivered through Manulife | CQS Investment Management and Manulife | Comvest Credit Partners.
Great Gray is expected to act as trustee, supplying the trust structure, fiduciary oversight and operational infrastructure needed to hold private-market assets inside a daily-valued, participant-directed vehicle. Rob Barnett, President and CEO of Great Gray Group, the parent company of Great Gray and one of the largest independent CIT trustees in the United States, said that private assets must sit inside a vehicle that values daily, trades on recordkeeping platforms and meets fiduciary standards.
Wayne Park, CEO of Manulife John Hancock Retirement, said the product builds on the firm's established target-date framework by integrating private-market exposures "in a thoughtful and disciplined way." David Cohen, Head of U.S. Retirement Investment Product at Manulife John Hancock Investments, described Lifetime Blend+ as bringing together the firm's capabilities across retirement, multi-asset investing, stable value and private markets. Manulife John Hancock also said expanding private-market access in retirement plans requires investor education and pointed to educational resources for participants.
Taylor Benson, Managing Director and Head of U.S. Defined Contributions at StepStone, cited non-correlation to public markets, durable cash flows and inflation resilience as reasons for a private infrastructure allocation in the target-date fund. StepStone's private infrastructure business invests across digital infrastructure, energy, utilities and transportation.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.